...In the kitchen, Hilary opened a small can of cat food and emptied it into Shadow’s food bowl. While he ate, she took a frozen dinner from the freezer, removed the packaging, and popped it in the oven. She picked up a knife from the utility drawer, and returned to the living room.
It was time to open the carton.
She’d purchased it from an estate sale in an online auction. The bulk lot of items had cost too much, but the sale of the included Tarot deck would cover the price and net her a tidy profit, too.
With the utility knife, Hilary cut open the packing tape and pulled back the carton's flaps. After discarding mounds of crushed newspaper and bubble wrap, she found the Tarot deck. She turned over the small box, then opened it and slipped out the cards. The thick vellum felt as smooth as satin.
Shadow had finished his supper and sauntered in. He sat nearby, washing up.
“The Tarot deck is exactly what Taryn Andrews is looking for.” She quickly flipped through the cards, counting, but none were missing or damaged. “I’ll have to call Taryn first thing in the morning. She’s been frantic to find this particular design to add to her collection.”
She set aside the deck and pulled out a bag of assorted crystals and gemstones and several small fantasy statues of dragons, wizards, and castles. She took out the padded wooden box last.
She slit the bubble wrap, and when it fell away and she touched the box, a jolt of electricity skittered up her arm. She almost dropped it, but caught it in time, half expecting another jolt. When nothing happened, she passed off the first shock as static.
In a bed of dark blue velvet lay a wooden staff with a plum-sized crystal attached to one end. Its once-textured surface had been worn smooth by handling and time, and the crystal reflected light in a sparkling array from each of its many facets. She blinked to clear her vision and realized it was what had been listed among the items she’d purchased as a wizard’s staff...